in january, the u.s. mint temporary suspended sales of 2013 american eagle silver coins, because it ran out of them. a mind-boggling seven-and-a-half million coins were purchased in january; the biggest month on record. the total was just one and a half million ounces the month before. over six million coins were sold in january of last year. yes, there's always strong collector interest at the start of every new year. but this year, there's also strong demand from silver investors, and traders. >> this year, for the last three months, all i've been hearing down here is i want to buy silver coins. i want to buy silver coins. >> reporter: some are buying silver out of fear about inflation. specifically, they worry the federal reserve's efforts to boost the economy will devalue the dollar, so they want to own alternative currencies. but silver doesn't just benefit from safe-haven buying, it's also an industrial commodity. it's used in automobile manufacturing. and many automakers are forecasting increased g